Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder, and president of The Urban Alternative and author of over 100 books, booklets, and Bible studies. The first African American to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University. Dr. Evans holds the honor of writing and publishing the first full-Bible commentary and study Bible by an African American. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on over 1,400 radio outlets daily and in more than 130 countries. Dr. Evans’ sermons are also streamed and downloaded over 20,000,000 times annually.

well I’m excited to preach this sermon

from our sanctuary it’s empty

but I’m here starting in my living room

move to our outreach quarters and now

we’re back in to my spiritual home where

I love to be as the next phase to to

getting things as closely back to normal

as possible but it just feels good being

in God’s house again those who know our

ministry worldview and philosophy nor

does the kingdom agenda the visible

demonstration and manifestation of the

comprehensive rule of God over every

area of life and all that we are facing

today there is a clarion call from

heaven to history from eternity into

time and that is a call for Christians

to become Kingdom disciples not just

churchgoers not just religious people

who carry their Bibles but Kingdom

disciples these are not part-time

Christians these are full-time Saints

who apply all of life to the rule of God

as they pursue an intimate relationship

with him I often use the illustration of

a football field where they’re competing

teams who bring different worldviews

different play books to the game and who

spend time in conflict with one another

we’re seeing that all around us today

we’re seeing the team’s lineup we’re

seeing the Republican team and the

Democratic team clash the white team and

the Black team clash the police team and

the community team clashed we’re seeing

the poor team and the rich team

clash and we’re seeing the conflict not

ending just like in a football game

where the clash keeps on going for the

extent of the game everybody trying to

win but in the midst of a clash of a

football game is a third team that’s the

team of officials this officiating crew

does not belong to either team that’s in

conflict on the field they belong to the

NFL they belong to another order they

represent the NFL in New York on the

conflict where they have been placed to

represent on the field of play they

don’t Don the uniforms of either team

because they have their own black and

white identity in the jerseys that they

wear they are distinct each has been

handed a book and that book governs all

decisions made on the field of play

their personal opinions must be subject

to that book their preferences must be

subject to that book they know sometimes

they’re going to be booed they know

sometimes they’re going to be cheered

but popularity is not their first

concern

it’s obedience to the book in the middle

of the conflict that matters you will

often see this team of officials

gathered in a circle so that there is a

unified call regarding the play because

they understand that they are to be won

in the call no matter which team they’re

calling for because they represent the

kingdom in New York and the chaos on the

field of play unfortunately today God

has an officiating crew that’s joined

the teams they’re more Democrat than

Christian or more Republican than

Christian more black than Christian then

no more white than Christian more part

of siding with this group versus that

then Christian and instead of bringing

order to the field of play they are

adding to the chaos on the field of play

that is because far too many Christians

far too many Christian leaders far too

many churches don’t understand that we

belong to another Kingdom run by another

king who has his own playbook and until

there is the decision to operate on

earth by the playbook that comes from

the kingdom in heaven by the executive

who rules that kingdom rather than

bringing order to the chaos we will find

ourselves part of the chaos and even

contributing to the chaos Jesus called a

meeting of his officiating crew in

Matthew 28 three groups attend the

meeting it says in verse 16 the eleven

disciples that is – Judas attended the

meeting first Corinthians 15 says more

on more than 500 brethren attended the

meeting and then it says that Jesus

concluded the meeting by saying that

he’s going to be with us till the end of

the age but we haven’t come to the end

of the age yet so guess what you and I

have been invited to the meeting so the

sixteen – five hundred

and everybody else who names the name of

Jesus Christ has been invited to the

meeting so why don’t we mosey on up to

the hill that was designated that is the

mountain and Galilee where Jesus called

the meeting to find out what this

meeting is about and find out what this

call is about where Jesus is looking for

some kingdom disciples not cultural

Christians not even first American

Christians Kingdom Christians who are in

the culture for part of the nation but

who are not defined by it it says when

they saw him verse 17 they worshiped

they

saying their songs they prayed their

prayers they celebrated the resurrected

Christ because worship is always where

you start worship is the recognition of

God for who he is what he has done and

what you are trusting him to do it is

giving God as kudos it is giving God the

praise that his name deserves and they

did it through the worship of Jesus

Christ because Jesus Christ is our point

of access to the Father in heaven you

skip him you miss the father

that’s why Jesus could tell fill up when

you’ve seen me you’ve seen the father

you’re looking for the father well you

better come through me because I give

you the greatest clarity of who the

father is how the father functions and

what the father wants so they have their

worship service but we’re told that some

were doubtful they were they were there

but they had question marks I know when

we look at all the challenges medically

and culturally and racially and socially

in some a doubt they’re doubting whether

Christianity works whether Jesus is as

powerful as he declares himself to be

does God care about injustice or

righteousness or chaos and confusion

some were doubting but even though they

were doubtful they were still there they

didn’t let their doubts keep him home

they let their doubt to bring them out

so even if you have some questions when

you see the chaos in the world are they

gonna drive you to retreat or they gonna

drive you to draw near they at least let

their questions bring them near and they

worshiped when they worshiped or after

they worship it was time for the circuit

Jesus Christ steps up to the podium

because he’s the Pope a tear for the day

Jesus Christ lets out a blow your mind

kind of statement says all authority has

been given to me in heaven and on earth

no you didn’t all authority is given to

me in heaven and on earth translation

I’m in charge up there and I’m in charge

down here I’m in charge in the sweet by

and by but I’m also running things in

the nasty here and now I’m in charge and

forever and I’m in charge now

I run both shows the Greek word

Authority is the Greek word Lucia the

number of Greek words for power

authority in the New Testament the one

noted most is Dunamis that’s like where

we get our English word dynamite from

it’s it’s explosive power but that’s not

the word he uses here the word that GU

seer has to do with authority and

legitimate hands it has to do with the

legitimate right to exercise power let’s

go back to football the players are

younger stronger and faster than the

officiating crew they’ve been lifting

weights they’ve been running they’ve

been training they’ve been working out

so they’ve got Dunamis but the

officiating crew has that Gousha because

they got a whistle and a yellow flag

they’re outnumbered on the field of play

you got 11 on offense 11 on defense who

are young they’re strong and fast and

efficient vitiating crew is older slower

and fatter so so so they’re out man when

it comes to power but not when it comes

to authority because they can blow the

whistle and stop the show they can throw

the flag and penalize you because even

though you are number them and you got

more Dunamis you don’t have more at

Gousha because they got the badge of

authority

guess what Jesus says I’m in charge now

not only up there heaven and earth I’m

in charge down here I’m running the show

what Jesus is claiming is that he has

been designated by the Father to operate

on his behalf

in history he wants to call the shots

for history he wants to call this shot

not only for your life he wants to call

the shots for your family he wants to

call the shots for your business he

wants to call the shots for your church

he wants to call the shots for your

politicians he wants to call the shots

for your leaders he says I’m in charge

now man you know somebody can have

dually Authority and you still rebel

against them in other words you don’t

accept their authority even they though

even though they possess legitimate

Authority what we have found too far

today is people have rejected Jesus’s

legitimate Authority and they’re going

to their own teams exchanging jerseys

and they’re not paying attention to what

the duly authorized Authority has to say

we would nearly have this mess at this

level if Jesus was allowed to be in

charge and I’m not talking about some

ethereal and charging us out there in

never-never land because remember he

said heaven and earth eternity and time

but then it comes and he explains why

this matters if we’re gonna fix this

madness solve this mess on both the

issues of injustice and the pain and the

history and the circumstances that keep

it going

generationally or the issue of

righteousness the right response based

on God’s Word we’re going to put these

twin towers together since from God’s

throne again Psalm 89 14 comes

righteousness and justice these are not

seesaws to go up and down these are

twins who are joined at the hip you

don’t skip injustice and call for

righteousness and you don’t skip

righteousness in the name of injustice

know you got to go for both because

Jesus says I’m running

show now so I should call the shots

based on my book he says I here’s what I

want you to do I want you to make

disciples now this passage gets watered

down because it gets watered down to

mean make Eve make Christians now don’t

don’t don’t get me wrong you need to

become a Christian if you’re gonna be a

disciple but he’s talking about more

than getting a passport to heaven

trusting Jesus Christ as your personal

sin bearer forgives you of your sins and

gives you the free gift of eternal life

for heaven but his authority is not just

in heaven it’s on earth he says I need

some folk who will follow me in history

that’s what the cipher ship is all about

discipleship is a term for history

conversion is your term for eternity but

discipleship is how you how you are

living it out in time and space

what is the disciple he or she is a

visible verbal follower of Jesus Christ

a disciple is a person who is

progressively learning to live all of

life under the authority the rulership

of Jesus Christ it comes from a Greek

concept when plato’s influence hit

Aristotle and Aristotle set up academies

schools to train people in platonic

thoughts set through Aristotelian logic

so that this generation of thinkers

would invade the culture with the

thinking of Plato through the system of

Aristotle in order to transfer transform

the culture we call it in history the

hellenization of Rome

that is when Rome was the military power

but it was under Greek influence because

they had been culture eyes in their

thinking and in their operation

by the influence of this training Jesus

says I’m the trainer you’re the trainee

and I want to train you with my

authority and Kingdom thinking Kingdom

living and Kingdom operating a kingdom

disciple is a person who reflects the

values of heaven in the decisions that

have to be made on earth they’re not

just dipping in and out of the Christian

faith they are not taking parts of the

Bible that worked for them and ignoring

the parts of the Bible that they don’t

like no because they’re under full-time

authority many of our problems today

that we’re dealing with is because God

has not had enough of his officiating

crew on the field representing him

because they’ve joined the teams a more

Democrat then Christian and Republican

Christian as I said and you can pick the

category but they’re not wearing their

unique uniform of the kingdom because

they’re not disciples they may be

Christians on their way to heaven but

they’re no good for the field on earth

except the pieces that they like and are

convenient no he says I want you to make

disciples that’s an imperative in the

Greek text in other words he’s not

requesting it he’s demanding it our

problem is we have too many church

members who aren’t willing to be

disciples they aren’t willing to subject

their humanity to Christ Authority and

so they run back to their teams in order

to get team acceptance rather than

kingdom acceptance leading to all kinds

of unresolvable chaos because the

officiating crew won’t officiate based

on the data that they’re getting from

heaven for how things are to operate in

history why is Jesus saying I want you

to make disciples he’s saying I want you

to make disciples because he only

transfers his authority because remember

all authority belongs to him he only

transfers a cocea

two disciples he doesn’t transfer it

just because you’re human nor does he

transferred just because you’re saved

you’re Christian he transfers it because

he can trust you with it

because he knows you’re not gonna change

books on him see we have Christians who

change books they go to cultural

documents racial documents historical

documents that contradict his document

you can go to those documents but they

must be evaluated based on his final

authority he says make disciples people

who take my word and my rule and

relationship with me seriously meaning

it determines your decisions regardless

of how you feel he gets to overrule you

because he’s in the position of

authority notice what he says I want you

to disciple because you don’t often hear

this when this passage is preached he

says I want you to disciple the nation’s

most of the time when we talk about

discipleship we talk about disciple and

individuals and certainly we want to

disciple people but God’s kingdom is

bigger than just your individual life it

involves your personal discipleship your

family discipleship your church

discipleship and your civil discipleship

that’s why you can speak nationally

that’s why we should be addressing not

only personal sins family sins church

sins but national sins he says I want

the structures that make up nations

addressed as well as the structures that

make up your life in your home if you

came to me and your life was out of

order I would try to take this book give

you God’s standard give you practical

ways to address your need so that his

authority would flow to the resolution

of your personal dilemma if you brought

your family to me and it said my family

is for

apart I take this same book give you

God’s standards for what a man is and

how a man is to function what a woman is

how she is the function where parents

and children are how they are the

function give you practical ways to

implement it and expect his authority to

bring order to your house if your church

came to me and said our churches in

chaos I take the same book I give you

his standards for what the roles are how

the roles are supposed to function

practical steps to implement it so God

spirits could give you and transfer his

authority to bringing the church and

making it whole again but what if you

brought your Congress to me or your

president to me or your commissioners to

me or your mayors to me well guess what

I wouldn’t do i wouldn’t change books i

wouldn’t switch books because the Bible

says God created government civil

leaders are on their own they don’t get

the to choose how they run a government

God except God is established how a

government supposed to run he calls the

government leaders ministers of God not

just ministers of culture and he says I

want to instruct you how to do it so so

when a culture is in trouble you don’t

switch books and we have too many

leaders switching books and it’s not

just having the book or holding the book

it is utilizing the book for

decision-making and until you do that

you’re not taking seriously being a

disciple which means you can have all

the prayer meetings you want and you

won’t hear from heaven you can you can

have all the prayer meetings you want

and God’s not gonna move because he will

not define your decision and when he

knows he can’t define your decision he’s

not going to share his that Gousha

his authority with you but for those who

are willing to become disciples in the

individual family church and cultural

lives ah and now you can draw heaven

down in the history because you’re not

just a Christian you are a disciple

you’re not a Christian didn’t even come

to Christ if you are a Christian

you need to be ruled by Christ as you

grow in intimacy with him by learning

what that rule looks like he shares his

authority I tell when I was chapel in

the Cowboys and chaplain of the

Mavericks I get tickets to the game and

I’d invite people to go with me but I

say stay close to me because there’s

certain rights and privileges that come

if you stick with me that you don’t get

if you wander off on your own I have a I

have a parking pass so if you ride in my

car you get the park where I park cuz

you hanging out with me you drive your

own car you pay your own price I get to

go through a private door you come with

me you get to go through that door but

that’s not because of who you are that’s

because of who I am you close to me you

get to sit in certain seats that’s

because they’re my tickets then I’m on

loan to you so you get to sit with me

but that’s not because of who you are

it’s because of who you with when it’s

over we’re not trying to rush like

everybody else we go on a private exit

up a private elevator out a private door

into a private parking lots and you’ll

be home before most people have gotten

out of the lights and that is because of

who you are with Jesus says if you want

to see my authority in heaven you better

come and hang out with me and does that

mean Christianese isn’t God good all the

time all the time God is good that’s

nice but that’s not enough it means I’m

submitting the biblical authority on all

four of those categories of the kingdom

and everything has to adjust to that

even if it’s a gangsta I was raised even

if it’s against what my mom and daddy

taught me even if the Greek Greek

disagrees with my politics or my race on

my class on my culture

it doesn’t they’re not any of those but

black is most beautiful when it’s

biblical and white is only right when

it’s a midst of God’s rule when those

standards are adhered to then you can

celebrate who you are because who you

are is being defined by who he is he

says there are three things you’ve got

to do if you’re serious about becoming a

disciple he lists three participles and

the Greek construct the participles

explain and define

the imperative the imperative is make

disciples he says go baptize and teach

those are the three participles

go now you can study going Hebrew Greek

you get ik Syriac you can you can study

it and go means go

it means don’t stay it means publicly

represent me oh it’s safe when we in

church no competition there’s only one

team on the field when you leave church

you have to go out there are you visibly

representing me or are you just talking

a good game and that has to show up in

your decisions your walk not your talk

your life not your lip your movement not

your mouth he says go that means public

display you know when we gather in our

worship services it’s like a huddle in a

football game the other team is not

allowed in the huddle and 65 thousand

people a hundred thousand people don’t

show up to watch their team huddle they

don’t mind a huddle as long as you only

spend a few seconds in it what they want

to see is what difference will the

huddle make having huddled will you now

score what are you going to do about

eleven other men on the other side of

the ball daring you to go public with

your private conversation

see they want to see what happens when

you break huddle we got a lot of

churches we’ve got a lot of leaders we

haven’t broken huddle enough we’ve

talked about love but we haven’t broken

huddle with it we talked about justice

but we haven’t broken huddle with it we

talked about righteousness but we

haven’t broken huddle with it we we talk

to each other in the huddle we don’t go

and let the public see what Kingdom

disciples look like in unison because we

have one Lord one Kingdom one authority

what book second thing he says is I want

you to baptize them

he doesn’t mean just get him wet bapt

it’s always used of a the Greek word is

bad kids oh it was used of a die maker

in New Testament days where a mother

would bring some cloth because she was

gonna sew a dress for her daughter and

the dye maker would baptize it that is

immerse it in a color so that if she

wanted to make a pink dress blue dress

red dress the cloth would now reflect

the color of the baptism the baptism in

the dye well if you have come to Jesus

Christ and you have been baptized you

have a color it’s red because you’re to

be defined by the blood when the

football team comes on the field you

don’t see different uniforms you see one

uniform that doesn’t divide deny the

person in the uniform if he’s black is

still black white still white Hispanic

is still Hispanic doesn’t deny their

humanity but their humanity is covered

by a centrally defined uniform our

commitment to Christ must be defined by

the blood it must be defined by our

unified commitment to him he is our

identity that’s what it means to be

baptized has to do with your

classification and you must be Christian

first let me say that again you must be

Christian first if you’re not Christian

first then you have insulted Christ yes

keep your humanity

God is not calling all of us to be the

same he’s all he’s calling us to wear

the same uniform though

without losing the uniqueness that he’s

given each of us in the spheres of our

influence it is time for the Church of

Jesus Christ to wear the same uniform

publicly not just privately in church

where there the other teams not there

that you are to be defined by your faith

not by your feelings if mother was wrong

mother was wrong if daddy was wrong

daddy was wrong if my race is wrong my

race is wrong if the community is wrong

community is wrong the politicians are

wrong

politicians are wrong police are wrong

police wrong why because I’m wearing one

uniform here and it’s defined in my

decision-making by Jesus Christ and I’m

calling it like he calls it on every

level of life he says no you you to be

baptized you to put on this this uniform

and then he says teach them teach them

to observe whatever I’ve command you oh

yeah teach them doctrine teaching

pneumatology ecclesiology eschatology

angel all the Anthropology teach them

all the ologies

but the whole point of the ologies is to

observe in other words teach them how to

live it not just learn it you know we

got be a lot of amens praise the Lord

hallelujah you know we get a lot of

learning but Jesus doesn’t just give

authority to learners he gives authority

to observers that is people who are

ready to implement his truth not just

discuss it because we pontification czar

everywhere everybody has a thought

everybody has an idea well let me

explain something there are two answers

to every question God’s answer and

everybody else’s and everybody else is

wrong when they disagree with him God

has spoken and he has not stuttered he’s

spoken about racism he’s spoken about

injustice he’s spoken about classism

he’s spoken about culturalism he’s

spoken about politics he’s spoken about

freedom he’s spoken about all the

systemic

injustice is as well as in justices that

come from our personal hearts God has

spoken about all these subjects but what

we do unfortunately is pick and choose

and we don’t deal with the whole Council

of God he says no you teach them to

observe it and not only in church but in

the workplace in the political spheres

that’s what you do and we don’t have

enough disciples who observe all that

he’s commanded not just the parts that

they like that’s what it says he closes

with a statement he says and I will be

with you always even until the end of

the age ah now in the Greek text we call

this the ego eimi construction the word

I is written twice if you were to read

it literally it would say I even I will

be with you but they didn’t write the

word I to ice they just intensified the

word I and lo I that means

sho’nuff me I will hang out with you if

you are this not if you’re a Christian

if you’re a disciple a person growing in

relationship with to me who is

simultaneously submitted to my rule in

every category and he’ll do it publicly

not just privately let me put it another

way Jesus does not relate to all

Christians equally doesn’t matter you

color your culture you know uh in Saint

John chapter 2 verses 23 to 25 you read

a statement it says many believed in him

many became Christians the Greek phrase

pistou o ice always means to become a

Christian many believed in him got saved

got converted but then it goes on to say

but he would not commit himself to them

because he knew what was in them whoa

they got saved but he wouldn’t entrust

himself he wouldn’t commit himself why

because they weren’t committed yet they

were on their way to heaven but he

couldn’t use them on earth they had

believed in him for eternal life but he

wasn’t ready to impart his authority to

them

because they weren’t all in yet the

reason why we’re not seeing prayers

answered the reason why we’re not seeing

calm in the middle of our storms

socially politically economically

racially and even medically with this

crisis it’s because he doesn’t have

enough full time commitment we have the

ability to change God’s mind in God’s

mind trust me is the one we need to

change but we will not change his mind

until we change the comprehensive nature

of our commitment we have watered-down

Christianity to be heavenly and not

historically implement it says I will be

with you always even until the end of

the i’ma hang out with that kind of

Christian that kind of church that kind

of pastor that kind of family who live

it out publicly in all areas of life so

there’s a call a clarion call it’s a

call for Kingdom disciples men and women

pursuing an intimate relationship with

Jesus Christ while submitting to his

authority even when they don’t prefer

what the rulebook says when he sees that

and the broader he sees that especially

coming out of our churches then he’s

comfortable sharing is that Gousha

because he knows we’re producing

disciples not just church members we’re

producing people who are all in not just

there for the program this is a serious

meeting Jesus called because this is

serious Authority he came to offer in

closing a man one day was on his way to

his honeymoon

new bride was in his car they were on

their way to spend their first night

together but to get to the place where

they were going they had to go down a a

lonely country road on a heavenly foggy

night there was a big truck in front of

the car and he wanted to pass the truck

when he pulled out the past the truck he

didn’t see the oncoming van and there

was a head-on collision the van knocked

his car up in the air and flipped it

over into a ditch both he and his new

bride were knocked unconscious he came

to first looked over into the passenger

side and saw his blonde his bride

gushing with blood he knew that she

would bleed out and die soon if there

was not help given immediately as

fortune would have it he looked out of

the wind and saw a sign that said office

of dr. bill Jones how fortunate could it

be that this accident happened in front

of a doctor’s office he went over and

got his beloved and picked her up and

stumbled up to the house knocked on the

door and all gentleman came to the door

he said what can I do for you he says

she’s dying she’s dying please save her

the doctor said I am so sorry I don’t

practice medicine anymore that’s when

the young man angrily looked at him and

said mister you have two choices either

save her or take down your side but

don’t have a sign stuck up there

suggesting that there’s help here

because the said office of dr. bill

Jones but when we show up you don’t

practice anymore it’s time for

Christians to do one or two things it’s

time for us to practice publicly

full-time commitment to the lordship of

Jesus Christ or take down your sign but

don’t give the impression you all in but

when a nation is bleeding right in front

of our eyes

when hearts are broken when injustice on

one hand and

and their responsibility on another hand

when failure on one hand and maybe not

legitimate response on the other hand

when when leaders can’t fix it it’s time

for us to either do what the sign says

full-time commitment under divine

authority or just take down the sign and

don’t do false advertising there’s a

call now for Kingdom disciples there’s

no issue we face now to which the Lord

of Heaven and Earth doesn’t have an

answer to those who are willing to do it

when he reveals it there’s a call for

Kingdom disciples